I think heavy metal should actually give Shadow a genuine fright for like a short period of time. Guy was born in like the fifties, he was around for the earliest types of Rock being pioneered, but that shit was so different.
In fact, I feel like a quirk he should've had for a decent while, is that Shadow would call any rock song he hears Rhythm and Blues/R&B. Because, while I think Shadow definitely heard and maybe took a liking to Rocket 88, nobody called that song "Rock and Roll", and it wouldn't happen til like 5 years when "Rock around the world" I believe came out that the genre was ever officially recognized as its own thing.
Hell, while we're at it, let's just list a bunch of sound tech and genres Shadow would not be aware of IF we assume the 1951 sleep date:
- Rock music as a genre formally is recognized from R&B in the mid fifties.
- Motown music as a whole would only emerge like 5-10 years after he goes to sleep
- Elvis' entire discography, he was like 16 when Shadow went under
- The wall of sound! Spector would only get the faintest idea of this in 1955.
- Bossa Nova, if Shadow went into an elevator or a bookstore he'd probably describe the music playing as "weird, slow, samba"
- Chet Baker! He was like 2-3 years before his first release!
- Thelonious Monk's first record. Bro was put to sleep too soon to enjoy Thelonious Monk on the Ark, unless they beamed him up to play a tune or two.
That said, what would an accurate playlist look like if uncle Shadow wanted to go and reminisce the old days, what would something like that... begin, say, just begin to look like?
In three words: Galaxy News Radio.
I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire, set to Shadow walking through the desolate hull of the ARK? Maybe by the Inkspots, playing in Shadow's head as Shadow's falling straight towards the planet? Anything Goes playing hauntingly in Shadow's mind as he's mowing down hordes of Gun robots?
I think it's a fun audio-visual at least, heheh.
